Belarus (2005) | Cambodia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts') and 1 municipality* (horad); Brest, Homyel', Horad Minsk*, Hrodna, Mahilyow, Minsk, Vitsyebsk
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers |
20 provinces (khett, singular and plural) and 4 municipalities* (krong, singular and plural); Banteay Mean Cheay, Batdambang, Kampong Cham, Kampong Chhnang, Kampong Spoe, Kampong Thum, Kampot, Kandal, Kaoh Kong, Keb*, Kracheh, Mondol Kiri, Otdar Mean Cheay, Pailin*, Phnum Penh*, Pouthisat, Preah Seihanu* (Sihanoukville), Preah Vihear, Prey Veng, Rotanah Kiri, Siem Reab, Stoeng Treng, Svay Rieng, Takev |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16% (male 839,292/female 804,738)
15-64 years: 69.5% (male 3,481,432/female 3,672,991) 65 years and over: 14.6% (male 498,717/female 1,003,313) (2005 est.) |
0-14 years:
41.25% (male 2,626,821; female 2,526,510) 15-64 years: 55.28% (male 3,253,611; female 3,651,129) 65 years and over: 3.47% (male 177,577; female 255,853) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk | rice, rubber, corn, vegetables |
Airports | 133 (2004 est.) | 19 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 50
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 22 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
total:
6 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 83
over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 64 (2004 est.) |
total:
13 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 11 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 207,600 sq km
land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
181,040 sq km land: 176,520 sq km water: 4,520 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kansas | slightly smaller than Oklahoma |
Background | After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place. Since his election in July 1995 as the country's first president, Alexander LUKASHENKO has steadily consolidated his power through authoritarian means. Government restrictions on freedom of speech and the press, peaceful assembly, and religion continue. | Following a five-year struggle, communist Khmer Rouge forces captured Phnom Penh in 1975 and ordered the evacuation of all cities and towns; over 1 million displaced people died from execution or enforced hardships. A 1978 Vietnamese invasion drove the Khmer Rouge into the countryside and touched off 13 years of fighting. UN-sponsored elections in 1993 helped restore some semblance of normalcy, as did the rapid diminishment of the Khmer Rouge in the mid-1990s. A coalition government, formed after national elections in 1998, brought renewed political stability and the surrender of remaining Khmer Rouge forces. |
Birth rate | 10.83 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 33.16 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $3.326 billion
expenditures: $3.564 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2004 est.) |
revenues:
$363 million expenditures: $532 million, including capital expenditures of $225 million (2000 est.) |
Capital | Minsk | Phnom Penh |
Climate | cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime | tropical; rainy, monsoon season (May to November); dry season (December to April); little seasonal temperature variation |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 443 km |
Constitution | 15 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996; revised again 17 October 2004 removing presidential term limits | promulgated 21 September 1993 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Belarus
conventional short form: Belarus local long form: Respublika Byelarus' local short form: none former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form:
Kingdom of Cambodia conventional short form: Cambodia local long form: Preahreacheanachakr Kampuchea local short form: Kampuchea former: Khmer Republic, Kampuchea Republic |
Currency | - | riel (KHR) |
Death rate | 14.15 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 10.65 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $600 million (2004 est.) | $829 million (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL
embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83, 217-7347, 217-7348 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Kent M. WIEDEMANN embassy: 16-18 Mongkol lem St. 228, Phnom Penh mailing address: Box P, APO AP 96546 telephone: [855] (23) 216-436 FAX: [855] (23) 216-437 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV
chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Roland ENG chancery: 4500 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20011 telephone: [1] (202) 726-7742 FAX: [1] (202) 726-8381 |
Disputes - international | 1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundary with Latvia remains undemarcated but a third of the border with Lithuania was demarcated in 2004 | portions of boundary with Vietnam are disputed; parts of border with Thailand are indefinite |
Economic aid - recipient | $194.3 million (1995) | $548 million pledged in grants and concessional loans for 2001 by international donors |
Economy - overview | Belarus's economy in 2003-04 posted 6.1% and 6.4% growth. Still, the economy continues to be hampered by high inflation, persistent trade deficits, and ongoing rocky relations with Russia, Belarus' largest trading partner and energy supplier. Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprises. In addition, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, retroactive application of new business regulations, and arrests of "disruptive" businessmen and factory owners. A wide range of redistributive policies has helped those at the bottom of the ladder; the Gini coefficient is among the lowest in the world. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies. Growth has been strong in recent years, despite the roadblocks in a tough, centrally directed economy and the high, but decreasing, rate of inflation. Growth has been buoyed by increased Russian demand for generally noncompetitive Belarusian goods. | Cambodia's economy slowed dramatically in 1997-98 due to the regional economic crisis, civil violence, and political infighting. Foreign investment and tourism fell off. In 1999, the first full year of peace in 30 years, progress was made on economic reforms and growth resumed at 4%. GDP growth for 2000 had been projected to reach 5.5%, but the worst flooding in 70 years severely damaged agricultural crops, and high oil prices hurt industrial production, and growth for the year is estimated at only 4%. Tourism is Cambodia's fastest growing industry, with arrivals up 34% in 2000. The long-term development of the economy after decades of war remains a daunting challenge. The population lacks education and productive skills, particularly in the poverty-ridden countryside, which suffers from an almost total lack of basic infrastructure. Fear of renewed political instability and corruption within the government discourage foreign investment and delay foreign aid. On the brighter side, the government is addressing these issues with assistance from bilateral and multilateral donors. |
Electricity - consumption | 34.3 billion kWh (2004) | 136.7 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 800 million kWh (2004) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 3.2 billion kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 30 billion kWh (2004) | 147 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
59.18% hydro: 40.82% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m
highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m |
lowest point:
Gulf of Thailand 0 m highest point: Phnum Aoral 1,810 m |
Environment - current issues | soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine | illegal logging activities throughout the country and strip mining for gems in the western region along the border with Thailand have resulted in habitat loss and declining biodiversity (in particular, destruction of mangrove swamps threatens natural fisheries); soil erosion; in rural areas, a majority of the population does not have access to potable water; toxic waste delivery from Taiwan sparked unrest in Kampong Saom (Sihanoukville) in December 1998 |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Marine Life Conservation, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping |
Ethnic groups | Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish 3.9%, Ukrainian 2.4%, other 1.1% (1999 census) | Khmer 90%, Vietnamese 5%, Chinese 1%, other 4% |
Exchange rates | Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 2,160.26 (2004), 2,051.27 (2003), 1,790.92 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000) | riels per US dollar - 3,909.0 (January 2001), 3,840.8 (2000), 3,807.8 (1999), 3,744.4 (1998), 2,946.3 (1997), 2,624.1 (1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994)
head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since December 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; new election held 9 September 2001; October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run for a third term in September 2006; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4% |
chief of state:
King Norodom SIHANOUK (reinstated 24 September 1993) head of government: Prime Minister HUN SEN (since 30 November 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is chosen by a Royal Throne Council; prime minister appointed by the monarch after a vote of confidence by the National Assembly |
Exports | 14,500 bbl/day (2003 est.) | $942 million (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs | timber, garments, rubber, rice, fish |
Exports - partners | Russia 47%, UK 8.3%, Netherlands 6.7%, Poland 5.3% (2004) | Vietnam 18%, Thailand 15%, US 10%, Singapore 8%, China 5% (1997) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe on the hoist side bears Belarusian national ornamention in red | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (double width), and blue with a white three-towered temple representing Angkor Wat outlined in black in the center of the red band |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $16.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11%
industry: 36.4% services: 52.6% (2004 est.) |
agriculture:
43% industry: 20% services: 37% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $6,800 (2004 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,300 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.4% (2004 est.) | 4% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 28 00 E | 13 00 N, 105 00 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay | a land of paddies and forests dominated by the Mekong River and Tonle Sap |
Heliports | 1 (2004 est.) | 3 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total: 79,990 km
paved: 69,351 km unpaved: 10,639 km (2002) |
total:
35,769 km paved: 4,165 km unpaved: 31,604 km (1997) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 20% (1998) |
lowest 10%:
2.9% highest 10%: 33.8% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe; a small and lightly regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation does not meet international standards; few investigations or prosecutions of money-laundering activities | possible money laundering; narcotics-related corruption reportedly involving some in the government, military, and police; possible small-scale opium, heroin, and amphetamine production; large producer of cannabis for the international market |
Imports | 360,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) | $1.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals | cigarettes, gold, construction materials, petroleum products, machinery, motor vehicles |
Imports - partners | Russia 68.2%, Germany 6.6%, Ukraine 3.3% (2004) | Thailand 16%, Vietnam 9%, Japan 7%, Hong Kong 5%, China 5% (1997) |
Independence | 25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 9 November 1953 (from France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (2004 est.) | NA% |
Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, televisions, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators | garments, tourism, rice milling, fishing, wood and wood products, rubber, cement, gem mining, textiles |
Infant mortality rate | total: 13.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 14.3 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.39 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
65.41 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 17.4% (2004 est.) | 1.6% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) | ACCT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (subscriber), ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 2 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 1,150 sq km (1998 est.) | 920 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives) | Supreme Council of the Magistracy (provided for in the constitution and formed in December 1997); Supreme Court (and lower courts) exercises judicial authority |
Labor force | 4.305 million (31 December 2003) | 6 million (1998 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 14%, industry 34.7%, services 51.3% (2003 est.) | agriculture 80% (1999 est.) |
Land boundaries | total: 2,900 km
border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km |
total:
2,572 km border countries: Laos 541 km, Thailand 803 km, Vietnam 1,228 km |
Land use | arable land: 29.55%
permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001) |
arable land:
13% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 11% forests and woodland: 66% other: 10% (1993 est.) |
Languages | Belarusian, Russian, other | Khmer (official) 95%, French, English |
Legal system | based on civil law system | primarily a civil law mixture of French-influenced codes from the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) period, royal decrees, and acts of the legislature, with influences of customary law and remnants of communist legal theory; increasing influence of common law in recent years |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats; 56 members elected by regional councils and 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Predstaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004; international observers widely denounced the October 2004 elections as flawed and undemocratic, based on massive government falsification; pro-Lukashenko candidates won every seat, after many opposition candidates were disqualified for technical reasons election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Palata Predstaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA |
bicameral consists of the National Assembly (122 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) and the Senate (61 seats; two members appointed by the monarch, two elected by the National Assembly, and 57 elected by "functional constituencies"; members serve five-year terms
elections: National Assembly - last held 26 July 1998 (next to be held NA 2003); Senate - last held 2 March 1999 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - CPP 41%, FUNCINPEC 32%, SRP 14%, other 13%; seats by party - CPP 64, FUNCINPEC 43, SRP 15; Senate - seats by party - CPP 31, FUNCINPEC 21, SRP 7 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 68.72 years
male: 63.03 years female: 74.69 years (2005 est.) |
total population:
56.82 years male: 54.62 years female: 59.12 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 35% male: 48% female: 22% (1990 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, east of Poland | Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, between Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos |
Map references | Europe | Southeast Asia |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | contiguous zone:
24 NM continental shelf: 200 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | - | total:
295 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,305,932 GRT/1,853,487 DWT ships by type: bulk 22, cargo 237, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 3, container 8, liquefied gas 1, livestock carrier 2, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 7, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 5, short-sea passenger 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 3, South Korea 1, Malta 1, Panama 1, Russia 1, Singapore 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Army, Air and Air Defense Force | Royal Cambodian Armed Forces (RCAF), including Army, Navy, and Air Force - created in 1993 by the merger of the Cambodian People's Armed Forces and the two noncommunist resistance armies
note: Khmer Rouge and royalist insurgent forces were integrated into the RCAF in 1999 |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $176.1 million (FY02) | $112 million (FY01 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.4% (FY02) | 3% (FY01 est.) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,877,137 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,610,761 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
162,643 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 9 November (1953) |
Nationality | noun: Belarusian(s)
adjective: Belarusian |
noun:
Cambodian(s) adjective: Cambodian |
Natural hazards | NA | monsoonal rains (June to November); flooding; occasional droughts |
Natural resources | forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay | timber, gemstones, some iron ore, manganese, phosphates, hydropower potential |
Net migration rate | 2.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP [leader NA]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party [leader NA]; Opposition parties: Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party Narodnaya Gromada or BSDP NG [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LEBEDKO]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson]
note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active |
Buddhist Liberal Party or BLP [IENG MOULY]; Cambodian Pracheachon Party or Cambodian People's Party or CPP [CHEA SIM]; Khmer Citizen Party or KCP [NGUON SOEUR]; National United Front for an Independent, Neutral, Peaceful, and Cooperative Cambodia or FUNCINPEC [Prince NORODOM RANARIDDH]; Sam Rangsi Party or SRP (formerly Khmer Nation Party or KNP) [SAM RANGSI] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 10,300,483 (July 2005 est.) | 12,491,501
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 27.1% (2003 est.) | 36% (1997 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.09% (2005 est.) | 2.25% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Mazyr | Kampong Saom (Sihanoukville), Kampot, Krong Kaoh Kong, Phnom Penh |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998) | AM 7, FM 3, shortwave 3 (1999) |
Radios | - | 1.34 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 5,512 km
broad gauge: 5,497 km 1.520-m gauge (874 km electrified) standard gauge: 15 km 1.435-m (2004) |
total:
603 km narrow gauge: 603 km 1.000-m gauge |
Religions | Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.) | Theravada Buddhist 95%, other 5% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier (a joint stock company) Beltelcom which is a monopoly
domestic: local - Minsk has a digital metropolitan network and a cellular NMT-450 network; waiting lists for telephones are long; local service outside Minsk is neglected and poor; intercity - Belarus has a partly developed fiber-optic backbone system presently serving at least 13 major cities (1998); Belarus' fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: country code - 375; Belarus is a member of the Trans-European Line (TEL), Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line, and has access to the Trans-Siberia Line (TSL); three fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to Latvia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine; worldwide service is available to Belarus through this infrastructure; additional analog lines to Russia; Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations |
general assessment:
adequate landline and/or cellular service in Phnom Penh and other provincial cities; rural areas have little telephone service domestic: NA international: adequate but expensive landline and cellular service available to all countries from Phnom Penh and major provincial cities; satellite earth station - 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 3,071,300 (2003) | 21,800 (mid-1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.118 million (2003) | 80,000 (2000) |
Television broadcast stations | 47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995) | 5 (1999) |
Terrain | generally flat and contains much marshland | mostly low, flat plains; mountains in southwest and north |
Total fertility rate | 1.39 children born/woman (2005 est.) | 4.74 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 2% officially registered unemployed; large number of underemployed workers (2004) | 2.8% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003) | 3,700 km
note: navigable all year to craft drawing 0.6 m or less; 282 km navigable to craft drawing as much as 1.8 m |